The Fifth Way
by Hoplite39
Summary: When Shepard is on the Citadel at the end of ME3, the Catalyst tells her to choose from 4 bad options. But on that fateful Halloween night, another ghostly image of the hooded young boy appears before her and offers to reveal the truth about the Catalyst, the Crucible and the Reapers. Will Shepard discover a fifth way to end the Reaper threat? Entry to Aria Afterlife Halloween comp
1. Defying the Catalyst

**A/N THIS MULTI-CHAPTER STORY IS AN ENTRY TO THE ARIA'S AFTERLIFE HALLOWEEN COMPETITION.**

**THIS STORY IS HOLLOWEEN THEMED. IT INCLUDES REFERENCE TO THE SUPERNATURAL AND GHOSTS, ETC. IF THAT DOES NOT APPEAL TO YOU, IT MAY BE BEST NOT TO READ FURTHER.**

**SPOILER ALERT: THIS STORY INCLUDES ME3 ENDING SPOILERS.**

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN MASS EFFECT.**

THE FIFTH WAY

Chapter 1 - Defying the Catalyst

Wounded and helpless, Shepard limped slowly along the pathway.

She was in the Citadel. She had witnessed the death of Andersen and conversed with the entity called the Catalyst. Now she would have to make a choice that would determine the fate of the whole galaxy.

She stopped at the intersection where the path divided into three. With bitterness and resignation in her eyes, she turned to look back at the holographic image of the Catalyst. Shepard fleetingly wondered to herself why the catalyst had taken that particular form to converse with her. Why the form of the boy whose death she had witnessed during the initial Reaper attack on Vancouver? Why him? Why a boy she hardly knew? Why not Ash? Or Morden? Or Thane? Or some other person she loved and respected? It didn't make sense.

Shepard turned back and shrugged her shoulders. She realised that it didn't really matter in the end what form the Catalyst took. All that mattered was that she had to stop the Reapers in the best way she could. With reluctance, Shepard turned her attention to the choices before her.

She could go to the right and fire on the area glowing in red with her pistol. The Catalyst promised that this would destroy the reapers. However, Shepard also learned that it would also destroy the Geth and EDI. After all the Geth and EDI had done for her, it was a sacrifice Shepard did not wish to make.

Shepard looked to the blue control panel on the left. If she activated it, she would be able to control the Reapers. She could order them to stop their attacks immediately, thus ending the war at a stroke. Her physical body would cease to be, but she could end the threat of the Reapers in the galaxy by keeping them under her control. She could ensure they would do no more harm and command them to help with the reconstruction.

She turned her attention to the vertical stream of green light before her. She could leap into the green light and activate the synthesis process . The Catalyst had suggested that this would be the optimal solution, somehow combining organics and synthetics into one, thus ending the need for the Reaper cycle. It would kill her, but bring lasting peace to the galaxy.

Finally, there was the fourth option. To reject the Catalyst's offer and let the Reaper war continue. Shepard knew defeat was inevitable in that case. She would have to hope that future civilisations may find a way to defeat the Reapers from the data that Liara had hidden in secret locations around the galaxy. But that would not help those in the current civilisation. It would condemn Shepard's companions, loved ones and allies to an existence of hopelessness, terror and, ultimately, extinction.

Shepard closed her eyes and shook her head in resignation. This was not the way she hoped it would end. She really hoped that the crucible would be a weapon that would allow them to definitively defeat the Reapers in some way. But the only choices available involved keeping the Reapers in existence or killing a whole synthetic species. These were not good choices at all.

After a moment's thought, Shepard decided to go for synthesis. It seemed the best way to end the war and bring lasting peace to the galaxy, even though she did not truly understand all its consequences. It seemed the best of four bad choices.

Hesitantly Shepard took a step forward towards the green beam of light.

Suddenly, the transparent ghostly shape of the young boy appeared in front of her, blocking her way to the synthesis light stream. He smiled at her.

"Please don't do that." Said the boy gently.

Shepard looked at the boy in confusion. After the Catalyst had spent so much effort persuading her to choose synthesis, she didn't understand why he was now standing in her way. Was he playing games with her? Was this all a joke?

"What are you doing?" Shepard frowned in annoyance. "I thought this is what you wanted."

The boy shook his head. "Look behind." Was all the boy said.

Shepard's frown of irritation turned to one of curiosity. She did as the boy said and turned to look behind her. To her surprise the holographic form of the Catalyst was still standing where she had left it. It was calmly waiting for her to make her choice.

Shepard turned her attention back to the transparent young boy in front of her. At first, she thought it was another holographic image generated by the Catalyst. But then she realised that the entity was different. It was slightly more white in colour. It was slightly more detailed. It had more substance to it. And, in a strange way, it felt slightly more real.

For a moment, Shepard thought she was going mad, possibly from the stress and anxiety she was going through at that moment. But something told her that there was more to this apparition than a simple hallucination.

"Who are you?" She asked.

"Shepard? Who are you talking to?" She heard the Catalyst say from behind her.

At that moment, Shepard realised that the Catalyst could not see or hear the apparition in front of her. Shepard knew that the Catalyst was in her mind. So it only meant one thing. The ghostly entity in front of her was external to herself. It originated from somewhere else. It was not in her mind or linked to the Catalyst. And it did not exist in the physical world.

"What are you?" Whispered Shepard.

The boy in front of her smiled and held out his hand.

"Take my hand and you will see?"

When Shepard had spoken to the Catalyst, she had felt nothing from it. Just the cold arrogance of a lifeless machine. But the ghostly entity in front of her was different. She sensed a strong wave of empathy and gentleness emanating from it. It was like she could feel the warmth of its soul.

"Shepard. Why have you stopped?" The voice of the Catalyst said from behind her. "Who are you talking to?"

For a moment, Shepard pondered what to do. But as she looked on the boy in front of her, her instinct told her she should trust him.

"Shepard!" Said the voice behind her more insistently. "You must choose!"

Shepard ignored the Catalyst. Instead, she reached out her hand to the child in front of her. The boy smiled and took her hand in his. Shepard's head was immediately filled with a blinding light. But it was not an unpleasant experience. She felt herself floating. She felt her mind drift gently into unconsciousness

And then Shepard's body collapsed to the floor of the Citadel.


	2. The boy

CHAPTER 2 - THE BOY

When Shepard awoke, she was lying in a forest clearing.

She sat up and found the young boy sitting beside her, stoking a small fire with a stick. This time, he was now in solid form. He had lost the ghostly transparency she had seen in the Citadel.

"Where am I?" She asked.

"Do you not recognise the wood?" The boy replied with a smile.

Shepard looked around and recognised where she was. She was in the forest where she had seen the boy in her dreams. But whereas in her dreams she experienced everything in a slow-motion haze, this time it all looked and felt real. The birds were singing in the trees and she felt a breeze caress the skin on her face. She looked down and briefly inspected herself. She was wearing undamaged clothes and all her wounds were healed.

"Is this a dream?" She asked.

"Of sorts." The boy replied.

"Am I dead?" She asked. "Or about to die?"

"Oh, no." The boy grinned at her mischievously. "You are not dead."

"Who are you? Are you the Catalyst?"

The boy shook his head and laughed. "No. I'm not the catalyst."

"Then who or what are you?"

"I am the boy you helped in Vancouver." He said. "Don't you remember?"

"Of course, I remember him." Shepard frowned. "I saw him die."

The bog shrugged and put some more twigs on the fire.

"What are you then?" Shepard asked. "A hallucination? A memory? A projection?"

"No. I am none of these things?"

"Well, what then?" A slight sign of irritation was now creeping into Shepard's voice.

After a brief pause, the boy answered. "Do you know what day it is today?"

Shepard thought for a moment. "It's the 31 October." She stated confidently. "And what's the significance of that?"

"It's Halloween." Said the boy. "It's the day when ghosts come out."

Shepard looked at the boy for a moment. Then she burst out laughing.

"So you are a ghost then?" Said Shepard.

The boy didn't answer. He just shrugged.

"So why would a ghost appear to me?" She asked.

The boy's smile disappeared. He looked at her with a serious expression. "To help you against the Reapers. To help you find the truth."

Shepard laughed again and shook her head in disbelief.

The boy looked away from her. "You don't believe me, do you?" He said disconsolately.

"You have to understand." Shepard smirked. "The idea that you are a ghost is very hard to believe."

"Yet, you believe the Catalyst?" Asked the boy.

The boy's words caused Shepard to reflect on her situation. A disturbing thought entered Shepard's head. Why did she believe everything the Catalyst said? The Catalyst was nothing more than a hologram generated by her enemies to communicate with her. Why should she believe that any more than the young boy beside her?

Shepard considered the boy a moment. He spoke and acted very much like the young boy she had met in Vancouver. He was very different from the Catalyst. The Catalyst was cold and mechanical. It showed no emotion or feeling. It just expected to be obeyed and believed. But the boy beside her appeared acted like a real person.

Shepard didn't know whether the boy was really a ghost or not. Or whether he was just a figment of her imagination. But he had brought her to this place, wherever that was, and claimed he wanted to help. For the moment, Shepard decided to play along and give him the benefit of the doubt. She had nothing to lose.

"What's your name?" Shepard asked the boy.

"Casey." He answered.

"It's nice to meet you Casey."

The boy smiled.

"Now, Casey." Shepard said softly. "Why did you bring me here?"

"So we can talk without the Catalyst hearing us."

Shepard nodded. That did make sense.

"And how can you help me?" She asked him.

"You are looking for a way to destroy the Reapers without sacrificing yourself or your friends." Said the boy. "I know a way."

"But the Catalyst did not give me that choice." Shepard frowned.

"No." Said the boy. "It is not one of the four solutions the Catalyst is permitted to offer you. But it can be done. There is a fifth way."

"How do you know all this?" Asked Shepard.

"When they Reapers used my image in their Catalyst program tonight, my spirit was able to enter their system. I know everything about them."

Shepard still felt sceptical about the ghost story. But she decided to go along with it for the moment.

"And why do you want to help me?" Asked Shepard.

"Is that not obvious?" Said the boy. "The Reapers killed me. They killed my family. They are destroying Earth. They are using me to trick you."

"Yes I suppose you are right." Said Shepard, feeling a little stupid.

"In the end, I help you because I want to." The boy gave a sly smile. "And because I can."

Shepard nodded. She couldn't dispute his arguments. She found it completely convincing that the boy's ghost would want to help her. Assuming of course, ghosts actually existed.

"Does the Catalyst know you are there?" Asked Shepard.

"No." Replied Casey. "They know nothing of my presence. Or what I know. I am hidden to them."

"And why can I see you then, if you are inside their system?" Asked Shepard.

"Your mind is linked to the Catalyst. You can see me because you are human. And because you have met me when I was alive. And because I let you."

Shepard nodded. The concept that there was a ghost living inside the Catalyst machine was something that Shepard found difficult to accept. But she was willing to try anything if it there was a chance of definitively defeating the Reapers.

"So how can we defeat the Catalyst?" Asked Shepard.

"I can possess the Catalyst." The boy replied. "Then you can activate the fifth way. "

"Can we really do that?" Shepard injected some urgency in her voice. "Can we do it now?"

"No. We can't do it now." The boy shook his head. "I can only give control to you if you are free of indoctrination. You are heavily indoctrinated."

Shepard sighed. She always suspected she was indoctrinated. It was no surprise with the contact she had with Reapers and their artefacts over the years.

"I don't suppose there is any way to eliminate the indoctrination?" Shepard asked. She was not optimistic of the response.

"Yes, there is." Replied the boy to her surprise.

"How?" Shepard was hopeful again.

"You need to know the truth of the other four options the Catalyst has given you."

"The Catalyst did not tell me the truth?" Shepard frowned. "Was it lying?"

"No. The Catalyst did not lie." Replied the boy. "It only gave you half-truths. The full information on the four options is there for you to see. But you do not recognise it because of your indoctrination. Once you know the truth of all four options, you will be free of indoctrination. You will see that it is all a trick. Then you will be free to activate the fifth way."

"And how can I find out the truth? Can you show me the truth?"

"No. I can't." A sly smile appeared on the boys lips. "But there are others who can."

"Who are these others?" Asked Shepard.

"You will see." The sly smile turned into a broad grin. "All you have to do is look into the fire."

"Now?" Asked Shepard.

"Yes. Now."

Shepard smiled. "Ok, Casey."

Shepard turned her eyes to the fire crackling away in front of her. She remembered the fire from the dreams she had about the boy. In her dreams, the fire always rose up and consumed her. But this fire was warm and welcoming. Its light drew her gaze into its dancing flames. She found herself falling in…deeper…deeper.

Shepard found herself transported through a tunnel of red and white light. After a few seconds, she arrived at her destination. She was no longer in the forest. She was in a laboratory. A laboratory she knew very well. The laboratory from the Normandy SR-2.

At one of the lab desks, an old Salarian with one antenna was working at a monitor. The Salarian looked up at her. Shepard immediately recognised him and grinned with delight.

"Mordin!" Cried Shepard with unreserved joy. "Mordin Solus. Is it really you?"


	3. The Salarian

CHAPTER 3 – The SALARIAN

"Ah, Shepard. Good. You're here." Said Mordin in his usual brisk manner.

"Morden. It's great to see you again." Shepard beamed with joy.

"It's good to see you too, Shepard."

Shepard looked at Mordin for a moment. Her smile fell away as a sense of unease niggled at her. Shepard had seen Mordin sacrifice his life on the Krogan homeworld in order to cure the Genophage . She found it hard to believe it was him.

"Is it really you, Mordin?" Asked Shepard cautiously.

Mordin looked down at himself. "Looks like me. Feels like me. Yes, it's definitely me."

"But I saw you die on Tuchanka." Said Shepard. "How can it be really you?"

"Do you know what day it is, Shepard?" Asked Mordin

Shepard rolled her eyes. "Let me think. It's 31 October. Halloween. And you've come back from the dead to help me against the Reapers."

"Good, Shepard." Said Mordin. "No need to explain then."

Shepard smirked and crossed her arms. "So you're a ghost too, then? From the worlds of spirits and magic?"

"Over-simplistic. But effectively an accurate assessment."

"You're serious, Mordin? That doesn't sound very scientific."

"Nothing to do with science." Mordin started to work on his console. "Come back to help, Shepard. That's all you need to know. No time to explain how. Too complicated and no time. Priority to defeat Reapers. No time to waste on other matters."

Shepard watched Mordin for a moment as he continued to work on his console in silence. She realised she would get nothing more out of him on this subject.

"What is this place?" Shepard looked around, feeling the familiarity of the lab from her previous ship. "It can't be the old Normandy. It can't be real."

"No, not real, Shepard." Replied Mordin. "Spectral projection generated by your mind to facilitate our communication. Your human brain cannot perceive my existence in its true form. So creates simulation of reality your limited mental capacities can process and relate to."

"Ah, right." Shepard smiled and crossed her arms. "I'm not sure I really understand any of that."

"Good." Said Mordin. "You know it's really me then."

Shepard laughed. "That's true."

Morden tapped some keys on his console, bringing up a holographic image of the crucible.

"You were about you choose synthesis, yes?" Mordin glanced at her as he worked.

"Eh, yes." Replied Shepard, flustered by Mordin's sudden change of subject.

"Very bad idea. Not good at all." Mordin shook his head.

"But why?" Shepard frowned. "The Catalyst said it would bring peace and it would stop the Reaper cycle."

"True." Said Mordin.

Shepard looked confused. "But if it's true. What's the problem?"

"Been studying synthesis process. Solution only last for ten years. fifteen at most. Then everyone dead. Only Reapers remain. Cycle begins again."

"What? Only fifteen years? How?"

Morden brought up a holographic image showing a side-ways animation of Shepard leaping into the green stream of light. The image of Shepard disintegrated into billions of atoms. In a different animation, Shepard's atoms were then shown to spread throughout the galaxy.

"When you leap into the synthesis stream, your essence is distributed around all organics and synthetics. Creates one single species. Process is instantaneous."

Another holographic image appeared to show the visual representation of a genetic code. It spun in the air above their heads.

"Each individual keeps the form of the original species." The holographic animation started to display the various species of the galaxy, showing how synthesis was affecting their genetic code. "All still look different. But all are genetically the same. All have the same genetic code. Half organic. Half synthetic."

Shepard looked intently at the holographic images of numerous species as they spun and moved round in the in the air above her.

"But why would it only last fifteen years?"

"Synthesis changes genetic structure. Life span would be ten to fifteen years for everyone."

"Even for the Krogan and the Asari?" Asked Shepard. "They can live for hundreds of years."

"Lifespan reduced to fifteen years for all species. Krogan, Asaris, Quarian, Salarian, Human, Drell. Makes no difference. Everyone lives fifteen years at most after synthesis activated."

"But what about EDI and the Geth? They are synthetic."

A holographic image of EDI and a Geth appeared above Shepard.

"With synthesis, they are also part of the new species. They are part organic. They become mortal. They also only live 15 years. Then they too will die."

The image demonstrated that both EDI and the Geth now had the internal organs just like an organic species. Shepard studied the image.

"But surely the new species can reproduce?" She asked. "They will have children who will continue to populate the galaxy"

"No. Synthesis sterilizes everyone. Result of being part-synthetic. No possibility of reproduction."

The holographic image again displayed several species, demonstrating that their productive organs were no longer functioning.

"Everyone is sterile?" Shepard looked at Morden in horrified shock. "There would be no offspring?"

"Correct. Synthesis removes all ability to procreate. Makes genophage seem like powerful fertility treatment."

Shepard pondered Morden's words and looked at the images before her. She was now beginning to understand the truth. It was as if Morden had opened a locked door in her consciousness.

"But could the new species not find a cure to the infertility?" Asked Shepard. "They would still have their science and technology."

"No cure." Said Mordin. "Synthesis is not a disease. The condition is permanent. Cannot be changed without several decades of research."

"And they don't have the time…" Shepard said thoughtfully to herself.

"Won't do research anyway." Said Mordin. "They will all be indoctrinated by the time they realise there is no reproduction. Reapers will convince them there is no need for reproduction in new existence."

"But will the indoctrination not cease with synthesis?" Asked shepard.

"A Reaper never ceases to indoctrinate." Replied Mordin.

"Of course." Shepard muttered. Shepard knew this was true. Even dormant, derelict or damaged Reaper technology could still indoctrinate those around it. Shepard could just imagine the army of Reapers and their minions serving the new species in their new utopian world. The new species would be constantly subject to indoctrination. The Reapers would defeat them through their own complicity and cooperation.

"No wonder the catalyst said there would be peace." Shepard shook her head. "There would be no conflict. No drive to procreate. No need to compete. No motivation to build. No reason to look to the future."

"Correct, Shepard. Best and shortest scenario for the Reapers." Said Mordin. "No need to fight. No need to reap. Everyone lives in comfort and peace for fifteen years. Then everyone is dead. Reapers can clean up and leave. Wait for new civilisation to grow so the next cycle can begin."

"But the Catalyst said that Synthesis was the peak of evolution." Said Shepard. "Was that a lie?"

"No lie. But it is the peak of evolution in an evolutionary dead-end. This branch of evolution cannot progress. Leads inevitably to extinction."

"And leads to victory for the Reapers."

Shepard pondered her knew knowledge for the moment. She was horrified that she had almost chosen synthesis which would have caused the extinction of every species in the civilised galaxy. But there was one further question that perplexed her.

"The catalyst said that Synthesis would end the cycle" She said. "How can that be true if the Reapers win?"

"At time synthesis activated, cycle is over." Replied Mordin. "There are no synthetics and new species doesn't need them. Reapers live in peace with the new species. But when everyone dead, the solution comes to an end. Reapers are free again. Cycle begins again."

Shepard nodded. It all made sense. The Catalyst had not lied to her. But it had hidden the truth from her. The boy was right. The Catalyst had tried to trick her.

"Do you understand now, Shepard?" For the first time Mordin looked at her intently. "Synthesis does not end Reaper threat."

Shepard nodded. "Yes. I understand."

"Good." Mordin switched off all the holographic images. "Must get back. You must go and see the boy now. No time to waste. You must hurry. Must save galaxy. You must find the fifth way."

Shepard was taken aback by Mordin's brisk dismissal. But she smiled. That was typical of him. Once business was over, he was anxious for her to leave.

"Yes, of course Mordin." Shepard turned to leave. But then she realised she didn't know how to get back to the forest.

"Er..Mordin." Shepard said in embarrassment. "How do I get back?"

Mordin looked up at her and blinked. "You go through the door. As always."

"Ah, right. Of course."

Shepard turned to leave. But there was one last thing she wanted to say. She turned to face Mordin one last time.

"Thank you, Mordin." Shepard looked at him with sadness in her eyes. "For everything."

"You are welcome, Commander Shepard." Mordin looked up at her for a moment. The he turned his face back to the monitor he was working on.

"It was good to see you again, my old friend." She felt the sorrow in her own voice. She doubted she would see Mordin again.

"Likewise, Shepard." Mordin did not look up. "Goodbye ."

Shepard turned and walked to the exit of the lab. When she went through the door, she found herself again travelling through the tunnel of light. Moments later, she was sitting by the fire with the young boy.

"Did you find out what you needed to know?" The boy asked her.

"Yes, I did." Shepard smiled at him tenderly. "And thanks for stopping me choosing synthesis. It would have been the wrong decision."

"I Know."

Shepard remembered that Mordin seemed to suggest that Shepard should hurry. She decided not to waste time.

"So what now?" Asked Shepard. "I presume choosing to control the Reapers would not be any better?"

The boy shook his head. "No."

"And who will tell me why?"

The boy smiled. "Look into the fire and you will see."

Shepard smiled back. She looked into the fire and was taken through the corridor of light to her next destination. She wondered who she would see next to explain the pitfalls of controlling the Reapers. Who would it be. Ash? Thane? Anderson? She found herself looking forward to the encounter with both apprehension and excitement.

When she arrived at her destination, Shepard found herself in a finely decorated apartment.

It was a place she had been before. Sitting on a couch across from her was a beautiful Asari. It was an Asari that Shepard knew very well. But it was not an Asari she had expected to meet in this situation. Indeed, it was not a person Shepard had ever wanted to see again.

The Asari crossed her legs and smiled.

"Well, Shepard." The Asari said. "How delightful for us to meet again."

Shepard could only look in horrified shock at the woman sitting before her.

It was Morinth.


	4. The Asari

CHAPTER 4 - THE ASARI

"What are you doing here, Morinth?" Shepard folded her arms and glared at the Asari.

They were here both in Morinth's apartment on Omega. Morinth was sitting on the couch, while Shepard stood in front of her.

"Now, now, Shepard." Morinth smiled up at her. "That's no way to treat an old acquaintance."

"We are not acquaintances, Morinth."

"Well. We did speak a couple of time, Shepard. I would say that makes us acquaintances."

"You haven't answered my question, Morinth. Why are you here?"

"Well, for one thing, Shepard. You are in my apartment."

Shepard rolled her eyes and sighed in impatience.

"And for another." Continued Morinth. "I am here to help you."

"Help me. How can you help me?"

"Well, I hear you need some information on control." Morinth smirked up at her. "As you know Shepard, I am and Ardat-Yakshi. I am an expert on control."

For a moment Shepard stood silently. She found the idea of speaking with a cold-blooded murderer like Morinth distasteful. But on the other hand, she could not fault the Asari's logic. Morinth was certainly an expert in control.

Morinth was a serial killer who had used her mind control power to entrap and murder her countless victims. Morinth was the daughter of an Asari Justicar called Samara. Shepard had helped Samara track down and kill Morinth during a visit to Omega.

"In fact, it was a toss-up between me and the Illusive man."Said Morinth. "But I suspect that your memory of him is a little too, shall we say, fresh. And apart from that. I am the best qualified."

"OK, Morinth." Said Shepard. "Let's get this over with. Tell me what I need to know."

"Oh, now now, Shepard." Morinth smiled up at her. "Don't be so impolite. Take a seat and we can talk."

Shepard held her ground.

"I insist." Said Morinth pointing to a chair. "I'm not saying anything until you sit."

Shepard reluctantly sat in a chair as far away from Morinth as possible.

"That's better." Morinth smiled warmly. "No need to be uncivilised."

Shepard sat in silence and looked at her coldly.

"Now, Shepard. Have you heard the last track from Expel 10?"

Morinth was met with a stony faced wall of silence from Shepard.

"No? That's a pity. OK. Or has Vaenia released any new vids since you let my mother kill me. Surely, you're still watching Vaenia, Shepard? Or have you suddenly lost interest since we last met?"

"I'm not here for small talk, Morinth."

"Oh, that's such a pity. I do miss these little preasures in life." Morinth pouted at Shepard. "I was so hoping we could have a chat about our common interests. You seemed so…passionate…about them when we last met on Omega."

"I haven't got time for this, Morinth." The frustration was clear in Shepard's voice. "Mordin Solus said we had to hurry."

Morinth laughed. "Oh, I doubt that's true. And even if it was, it's no concern of mine. As you know, Shepard, I'd happily let the galaxy burn just for the thrill of it."

"Then why don't you do it then? Just let the galaxy burn."

"Oh, I would." Said Morinth Cheerfully. "But it would be much more satisfying to see the destruction of the Reapers. Don't you think? It's so exciting to see the great fall."

"So why did Mordin say it?"

"He probably just wanted you out of his lab. He is a scientist and probably only talked to you about work. He's not as sociable and amenable as I am."

Shepard glared coldly at Morinth for a moment. "Morinth. Can we please talk about the Reapers?"

Morinth looked at Shepard intently for a moment. "Of course we can, Shepard. Since you asked nicely."

"Well?"

Morinth put her fingers under her chin as if in deep thought.

"The Catalyst has offered you the possibility of controlling the Reapers." Said Morinth. "Am I correct?"

Shepard gave a slight nod. "Yes."

"You are probably considering accepting this proposal." continued Morinth. "You sincerely believe you can stop them from harming people and only intend to use them to help society. You plan to employ them in a military sense, but only to defend your territory from invaders and pirates. Or to neutralise troublesome antagonists. Am I right so far?"

"Go on."

"But it won't work."

"Why won't it work?" Asked Shepard.

"Oh, for the first few years, things will go as you envisage. "Morinth said. "You will bring peace to the civilised star systems through the power of your Reaper armada. After decades of peace, the civilised races will no longer need their own military. They will depend on you and your Reapers for protection.

"And how is that a problem?" Said Shepard.

"Because one day, perhaps decades in the future, you will give the order to recommence the harvesting. The Reapers will just swarm in and take what they want. There will be little or no resistance. The civilised races will have no defence because the Reapers will be the only significant military force in the galaxy. Giving you control of the Reapers is simply a convenient way of neutralising the defences of the galaxy's civilisations."

"I wouldn't let that happen." Said Shepard with confidence.

Oh, really?" Morinth frowned with curiosity. "And how would you stop it?"

"I would order the Reapers into dark space. Or I would command them to destroy themselves."

"But you would never give such an order." Said Morinth.

"Why?"

"Because you will be completely indoctrinated as soon as you accept control of the Reapers. Even though you won't realise it."

Shepard wanted to object. But she knew there was truth in Morinth's words. She had seen how the Illusive Man had become indoctrinated while believing otherwise.

"Please explain." Asked Shepard.

Morinth paused for a moment. She didn't answer the question directly.

"Do you know where you are, Shepard?" Morinth motioned around her. "I mean this apartment. Mordin's lab. The wood where the boy took you?"

Shepard shook her head.

"This is all imagined by the part of your physical brain that is not indoctrinated." Said Morinth. "This is the part of your subconscious that is still free from Reaper influence. It is the part of your physical mind that has allowed you to keep fighting the Reapers. It is the secret door that we can enter and communicate with you without the Catalyst noticing us."

Shepard nodded. For once her situation was beginning to make sense. "Go on."

"The Catalyst has been influencing the part of your mind that is indoctrinated." Continued Morinth. "They try to manipulate you into accepting one of their four options without considering any alternatives."

"What is this got to do with me controlling the Reapers?" Asked Shepard.

"As soon as you take control of the Reapers, your body will disintegrate and you will lose your physical brain. The part of your mind that is not indoctrinated will be lost for ever. Once you lose that part of yourself, you will lose the last part of your humanity and you will become as one with the Reapers. They will completely control you. Although you will believe that you control them."

"But I will still remember my existence as a human. Surely some of my humanity will remain? If I order the Reapers to destroy themselves or leave, they will."

Morinth shook her head. "You will believe that. And in theory it is true. But you will never give such an order because you will be indoctrinated. It will never occur to you after you take control. You will convince yourself that keeping the Reapers around will be of benefit to the galaxy. You will never do any harm to the Reapers or send them away. Do you really think the Reapers would give you such power otherwise? They only let you have control because they know you will act in their best interests."

Shepard shook her head, not wanting to believe it. "How do you know this, Morinth?"

"Because I know what you will become." Morinth smiled melancholically. "Because you will become just like me."

Shepard glared at Morinth in disgust. "What do you mean?"

"You know that I am Ardat-Yakshi, Shepard." Said Morinth. "As you know, the condition gives me some, shall we say, talents at controlling people. It gave me great power. Just as the Reapers are offering you great power now."

"But you had control of your power. You had a choice how to use it. Just as I will."

"No, Shepard. The indoctrination of the Reapers blinds you to the truth. Just as my condition as Ardat-Yakshi blinded me. I used to believe that I was in full control of my powers. But in reality, the condition controlled me. It drove me to…"

"…murder people?" Interjected Shepard flatly.

"Oh Shepard." Morinth frowned in feigned indignation." You make everything sound so vulgar. It drove me to impose my will on them and bring people into a higher plane of existence."

"A higher plane." Sneered Shepard. "Is that what you call serial murder these days?"

"I believe the Reapers also claim they are ascending their victims to a higher plane of existence." Mordin spoke firmly. "And that is what you will be doing if you accept control of the Reapers. You will kill billions and claim you are doing it for the benefit of the galaxy. You will believe you are in control. But in the end, it is the Reaper doctrine that will decide your actions. You will become a killer just like me, but on a galactic scale. And like me, you won't feel any remorse, because you will have lost any connection to your human past."

"I just can't believe it." Said Shepard. "It can't be true."

"When I was an Ardat-Yakshi." Morinth spoke more softly now. "I used to strip down the resistance of my victimns with persuasion and demonstrations of power. I claimed to be their friend and protector, while making them dependent on me. Sometimes it took days, sometimes even weeks. Then when they were defenceless, I made my final move on them. In the end, they surrendered without a struggle because they had lost the will and ability to fight. You will do the same to the civilised races of the galaxy if you control the Reapers, Shepard. That is the truth the Catalyst has hidden from you."

Shepard sat shaking her head as she pondered Morinth's words. She struggled to believe she could be compared in any way to Morinth. She just couldn't believe should would become a ruthless mass-murderer.

"I see you are having doubts, Shepard." Sighed Morinth. There is one way to relieve them. There is one way to let you see the truth and find the Fifth Way."

"And what is that?" Shepard looked at her suspiciously.

"By joining minds."

Shepard leapt from her chair.

"You have to be joking, Morinth." Said Shepard. "I know that is how you kill people."

Morinth rolled her eyes and shook her head.

"Shepard. You do know what day it is today, don't you?"

Shepard looked at her embarrassed.

"It's the 31st October. Halloween."

"Good, Shepard." Morinth sighed. "And you know what I am?"

"Apparently, you are a ghost. A spirit of the dead."

"And who sent you here?"

"The boy sent me." Said Shepard.

"Yes, the boy sent you. In order that I can help you."

Shepard shook her head. "I don't like it."

"Look Shepard." Said Morinth. "If I am dead, I can't harm you. But if you are not willing to do this, then I cannot help you. There is nothing more I can do and the galaxy is lost."

Shepard pondered the situation. The boy had sent her here to obtain help from Morinth. She did not believe the boy would send her into danger. She sensed that this mind-meld with Morinth was important.

"OK, I'll do it." With reluctance, Shepard sat beside Morinth. "Make it quick."

"Do you trust me Shepard?" Morinth brushed Shepard's hair with her hands and smiled sweetly at her.

"No. But I trust the boy."

"That will have to do then." Morinth gripped Shepard's head firmly with her hands. Morinth's eyes went black. "Embrace eternity!"

Shepard's mind exploded into light and colour as it was assaulted by visions of the Reapers assaulting and harvesting a planet. She saw the slaughter of organics and the destruction of a civilisation.

Shepard felt herself in control of the Reapers. She looked on the Reapers and recognised them as the pinnacle of evolution. They were the superior race that would rule the galaxy. Nothing else mattered. Nothing else was relevant.

She looked on the minor species of the galaxy and found that they were insignificant. She did not have any feelings of compassion for them. She only felt deep contempt for their pitiful lives. Lives that did not deserve to exist. Lives that should be harvested so that the Reapers could grow stronger. Shepard looked down at the destruction caused by the Reapers and she knew it was right and good. She felt great satisfaction at the harvesting of these inferior races who had dared to defy the Reapers.

Shepard looked in on herself. Into her very being. But she didn't recognise the spirit of Commander Shepard. She didn't recognise any humanity at all. Instead, she saw the dark presence of Harbringer. At that moment, Shepard realised that she was not looking at her future; she was looking at Harbringer's present. She was seeing things as Harbringer did at this very moment. She was looking on the invasion of Earth.

Shepard felt her mind look back in time, thousands of years in the past. She saw what Harbringer used to be. She saw him in his original form as he grasped the levers of the crucible that would disintegrate his body and give him control of the Reapers. She felt his spirit from his previous life. He was a good man from a race that lived long ago. He was a great leader who wished to defeat the reapers; a hero who accepted the Catalyst's offer to control the Reapers in the hope of saving the galaxy.

But he had not saved them. He had condemned his species to extinction and damnation. Just as he condemned countless civilizations in the Reaper cycles that came after.

Shepard recoiled from Harbringer's mind. She understood that this is what she would become if she accepted to control the Reapers. She would not defeat Harbringer. She would become a new incarnation of him. She would replace him and continue the Reaper cycle as their new leader.

After a bright flash of light in her mind, Shepard found herself back in Morinth's apartment. Morinth looked at her with a smile. Shepard held her head in her hands, her mind still dazed from the experience.

"How did I not see this?" Groaned Shepard holding her head. "How could I be so foolish? How did I become so lost? I almost let myself serve the Reapers."

"It won't happen immediately." Morinth said with surprising tenderness. "But as the decades go by, the people you know will die out and you will become out-of touch with the sentient species. You will lose touch with your humanity. You will lose all empathy with the civilised peoples of the galaxy. You will lose all compassion. Eventually, nothing of your old self will remain. Your will become one with the Reapers. And you will lead them to victory over your own people."

Shepard considered Morinth's words for a moment before asking her next question. "But what about the Geth?" Said Shepard. "They would surely resist."

Morinth shook her head. "The Geth will be loyal to you. When you choose to control the Reapers, you will also control the Geth. And when you give the order to recommence the harvesting, the Geth will join with the Reapers in subduing the organics."

Shepard shook her head in despair. She understood now that Morinth was telling the truth. If she chose the control option, the Reapers would start harvesting again in a few decades. And there would be nothing to stop them.

"Do you understand now, Shepard?" Asked Morinth.

"Yes. I understand." Shepard's voice was filled with regret.

Shepard stood up. "I have to get back to the boy." She said with urgency. "I'd better go."

"Such a pity. I was enjoying our little chat." sighed Morinth. "But I have things to do anyway. I need to visit my mother while there's still time."

Shepard frowned. "I thought Samara was still alive?"

"She is alive." Morinth smiled maliciously. "What would be the fun otherwise?"

Shepard shook her head. "OK. Morinth. How do I leave here? Through the door?"

"Don't be ridiculous, Shepard." Morinth laughed. "You are in a spectral projection. There are no doors here."

"Well how then?"

"Just close your eyes and think of the forest."

Shepard closed her eyes and imagined being in the forest. A moment later, Shepard felt the wind on her face and heard the rustle of the leaves on the trees.


	5. Transparency

CHAPTER 5 - TRANSPARENCY

As soon Shepard felt the wind on her face and heard the rustle of the leaves in the trees, she knew that she had left Morinth's apartment. She was back with the boy in the forest again. She opened her eyes and found herself looking at the fire which was crackling away in the clearing where they were sitting.

Shepard looked at the boy beside her. He smiled at her in return.

From the corner of her eyes, Shepard noticed something strange about her own appearance. She lifted their hands and examined them. She could partially see through them. They were slightly transparent. Shepard looked down at the rest of her body and noticed that the rest of her was transparent too. Shepard was not alarmed. After all she knew she was in some sort of dreamscape. But the phenomena did raise her curiosity.

"What is happening to me?" She asked, intently examining the back and front of her hands.

"You are losing your indoctrination." Said the boy. "The less indoctrinated you are, the more transparent you will become. When you lose all form, it will be time for us to return and face the Catalyst. Then you can activate the Fifth Way."

"Incredible." Shepard looked down at herself in wonder. She looked back to the boy. "Does that mean that I am not all here? That part of me is elsewhere?"

"You are all here. But in this place, you can only see the part of you that is indoctrinated. This is your mind's way of telling you how far you must go before you can defeat the Catalyst. As you lose your indoctrination, the transparency will become more obvious. Eventually you will be almost invisible."

"Why are you in solid form?"

The boy shrugged. "That is the way your mind prefers to see me."

"Strange." Shepard remembered how the boy was transparent on the Citadel. "It's like the opposite of reality. Here, it's like I am the ghost and you are real."

"You are still real." Said the boy. "But I have no form at all. I am just part of your imagination."

"But why didn't I notice this before?" Asked Shepard. "I didn't notice it after visiting Mordin."

"You were affected." Said the boy. "You lost substance after your visit to the Salarian. But only slightly. You were so much in a hurry to see your next guide that you didn't notice the change."

"That's true. I was in a hurry."

Thinking about time, a concerned expression appeared on Shepard's face.

"How much time do we have?" She asked. "Do we have a time limit. Do we have to hurry. Mordin seemed to suggest we did."

The boy shook his head. "Time is not a concern. There is no passage of time here. When you next wake up in the Citadel, only a couple of seconds will have passed for the catalyst."

"But why did Mordin suggest we had to hurry?"

"The boy smiled. "Whenever you meet a guide, they appear to you as you last remember them. They keep the physical form and personality from when they were alive."

"Yes, it makes sense." Said Shepard. "That grumpy old Salarian was always in a hurry to get rid of me after our business was finished on the Normandy. It looks like Morinth was telling the truth after all."

"Just because someone is bad does not mean they don't tell the truth." Said the boy. "Even the Catalyst tells the truth."

"That's true." Shepard sat in silence a moment. Then she turned again to the boy. "But why send me to Morinth? I was expecting only to see people who I had a close relationship with. I only expected to see those I respected and liked."

"Why?" Asked the boy. "The people we dislike can teach us about life as much as our friends. Did the Asari not help you understand the Reapers better?"

"Yes. She did." Said Shepard reluctantly. "You could say too well."

"Then it was worth it."

Shepard nodded. "Yes, it was."

The two of them sat in silence for a moment. Shepard inspected her partly transparent hands and thought about her encounter with Morinth.

"Morinth showed me that the someone else controlled the Reapers in the past by activating the crucible. But the cycle still continued." Said Shepard. "Is that true? Has the same thing happened before?"

"Yes. It has happened more than once."

"More than once? How do you know that?" Asked Shepard.

"We are in your mind." Replied the boy. "You are connected to the Catalyst. Because we are not alive, we are immune to the Reaper's indoctrination. We can see the truth. Now that you are losing your indoctrination, you are also starting to recognise the truth of the four options."

"And what about the other two options?" Asked Shepard. "Have the synthesis and destroy options also been chosen before?"

"Yes." Said the boy. "And that is why we know the Catalyst is trying to trick you. They have all happened before."

Shepard thought for a moment on the boys words. Morinth had demonstrated to her that control had been used before. She could see how synthesis could be used again and again. After all, when the new race created by synthesis died out, the Reapers could continue as before. But a question entered her mind.

"But how could someone have chosen the destroy option before?" Shepard frowned. "The Reapers are still here. How can the Reapers be destroyed, and yet return to continue harvesting the galaxy?"

"The Reapers' indoctrination still hides the truth from you." Replied the boy. "The option to destroy the Reapers is not all that it seems."

"Why doesn't that surprise me." Shepard smirked. "And who will tell me the truth?"

The boy smiled. "You know what to do. All you need to do is look into the fire and you will see."

"Of course." Shepard smiled back. "But after the last time, I'm not sure I'm looking forward to this."

With a feeling of trepidation, Shepard looked into the fire and found herself again transported through the tunnel of light. When she arrived, she found herself in a large enclosed dimly lit location.

Shepard looked up to see who was in front of her. When she saw who it was, her heart froze and her blood ran cold. Before her was a female human in off-duty military clothing. Shepard didn't know whether to laugh with joy or cry with grief.

Shepard was in the hangar bay of the Normandy SR-1. And before her stood Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams.


End file.
